Using NFC tags to trigger playback?

[pmac 143]

This might seem like kind of an odd request, but I've been getting into the whole "smart home" thing lately, and had an idea yesterday that I'd like to find out if it might be possible:

 

Does anyone here know if it might be possible to program an NFC tag with a custom shortcut or URL that would tell Emby to start playback of a particular media file on a certain player on a device? Ideally, what I'd like to accomplish is to place an NFC sticker onto an empty DVD case or printed card so that when someone taps the case or card on an NFC reader it would begin playback of that movie in Emby Theater, or some other client (pre-programmed into the NFC tag).

 

I've read on some other forums that a couple people have accomplished something similar with xbmc/Kodi, but haven't found anything recent, or whether this is possible with Emby. The couple of examples I've found so far involved the NFC tag triggering a URL on the server, but I'm not experienced with Kodi, or NFC tags, but like the idea of something like this, if not just for the "fun" factor.

 

If anyone here knows a way I might be able to accomplish this, it would be much appreciated!

 

Thanks

[pmac 143]

@@chef, this seems like something that could be up your alley, you wouldn't happen to have any pointers, would you?

[mastrmind11 722]

This might seem like kind of an odd request, but I've been getting into the whole "smart home" thing lately, and had an idea yesterday that I'd like to find out if it might be possible:

 

Does anyone here know if it might be possible to program an NFC tag with a custom shortcut or URL that would tell Emby to start playback of a particular media file on a certain player on a device? Ideally, what I'd like to accomplish is to place an NFC sticker onto an empty DVD case or printed card so that when someone taps the case or card on an NFC reader it would begin playback of that movie in Emby Theater, or some other client (pre-programmed into the NFC tag).

 

I've read on some other forums that a couple people have accomplished something similar with xbmc/Kodi, but haven't found anything recent, or whether this is possible with Emby. The couple of examples I've found so far involved the NFC tag triggering a URL on the server, but I'm not experienced with Kodi, or NFC tags, but like the idea of something like this, if not just for the "fun" factor.

 

If anyone here knows a way I might be able to accomplish this, it would be much appreciated!

 

Thanks

Use an old android phone w/ Tasker installed as the reader, and use Tasker to send a play command via Emby's api to play the specific title contained in the nfc tag.

[pmac 143]

Use an old android phone w/ Tasker installed as the reader, and use Tasker to send a play command via Emby's api to play the specific title contained in the nfc tag.

Thanks for the reply! I've got tasker installed on my phone already, as that's how I planned on testing this, but I'm not sure how to hook emby's API in order to send a command, that's what I'm hoping someone else in here might have some experience with that may be able to help.

 

Edit: Also, it would have to be a fairly specific command, since it would need to tell emby to start playback on a certain device/player (ie. Start "The Avengers" in "Emby Theater" on "Livingroom PC")

Edited September 21, 2018 by pmac

[mastrmind11 722]

Thanks for the reply! I've got tasker installed on my phone already, as that's how I planned on testing this, but I'm not sure how to hook emby's API in order to send a command, that's what I'm hoping someone else in here might have some experience with that may be able to help.

 

Edit: Also, it would have to be a fairly specific command, since it would need to tell emby to start playback on a certain device/player (ie. Start "The Avengers" in "Emby Theater" on "Livingroom PC")

Look into emby's API docs. You can do what you're describing.

 

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

[pmac 143]

Look into emby's API docs. You can do what you're describing.

 

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

Perfect, I'll have a look. Thanks!

[chef 3810]

1. Wire nfc reader to Arduino nano. Wire Arduino nano to nrf24l01.

2. Second Arduino nano to nrf25l01 chip.

 

Second Arduino is then plugged into your servers usb

 

Then read the serial data through USB. This data is the NRF data sent through 2.4 GHz radio from the NRF reader.

 

You'd have to have a console app open on your server waiting for NRF data and then send it to an emby plugin which triggers the play back command.

 

I have made a couple of these types of devices myself.

 

Not NFC, but the radio controllers.

 

I'll post a picture in a second

Edited September 24, 2018 by chef

[chef 3810]

 

This little device intercepts 2.4 GHz signals and runs it through an owin based web server on my emby machine. When I start a movie in emby and the window blinds are open, they close.

[pmac 143]

1. Wire nfc reader to Arduino nano. Wire Arduino nano to nrf24l01.

2. Second Arduino nano to nrf25l01 chip.

 

Second Arduino is then plugged into your servers usb

 

Then read the serial data through USB. This data is the NRF data sent through 2.4 GHz radio from the NRF reader.

 

You'd have to have a console app open on your server waiting for NRF data and then send it to an emby plugin which triggers the play back command.

 

I have made a couple of these types of devices myself.

 

Not NFC, but the radio controllers.

 

I'll post a picture in a second

 

That looks like it would be cool, but I don't necessarily need it to be wireless; if I were to just use a standard usb NFC reader, I should be able to keep it close enough for it to be handy, but I don't really know anything about using the Emby API, so it would probably take me a while to just learn the basics before I can even write the proper command to an NFC tag. Unless someone has a simple command that I'd be able to customize per title, I'll probably have to put it off until some other time...